Method and apparatus for controlling fire ants

ABSTRACT

The present invention pertains to a method and apparatus for controlling fire ants using electrical and mechanical stimulus methods. A stimulating source is provided, that when activated, attracts the fire ants, causes the fire ants to cluster around the stimulating source, and agitates the fire ants to the point that ants from a common colony attack each other. An AC voltage may be used as the stimulating source. A conical shaped container that extends downward to an apex may be used to force the stimulated fire ants closer together and thereby exacerbate the attack reaction. Periodic or continuous vibration applied in an area proximate to the stimulating source may be used to attract additional fire ants and may be interrupted by the detection of frequency or amplitude variations in the stimulating source output caused by the fire ants proximate to the stimulating source.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention pertains in general to a method and apparatus forcontrolling fire ants, and more particularly, to a method and apparatusfor controlling fire ants using electrical and mechanical stimulusmethods.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The continued proliferation of colonies of red imported fire antsSolenopsis invicta are becoming a serious problem in the United States.From their place of origin in Argentina and Brazil, they have spreadfrom sea ports along the Gulf of Mexico across the Southeastem States ofthe USA from Texas to Florida and northward to a latitude along thesouthern border of Tennessee. They are playing havoc with many importantutilities including electric power distribution and telecommunicationsystems as well as heating and air conditioning systems and trafficcontrol systems. Fire ants are attracted to electrical circuits and theycan cause failures in transformers, cables, connectors and relatedelectrical hardware. They also pose a serious threat to livestock andsmall animals lying on the ground. Thousands of fire ants can cover asmall animal on the ground and sting it repeatedly. The stings can causea newborn calf to be blinded and die. Fire ants can also be veryhazardous to people in the outdoors. It is very easy to step in or neara mound and be quickly covered with fire ants. They generally cause alocalized allergic reaction on the area of the skin punctured by theirstinging. Their sting is quite painful, and its effects can last forhours. Some individuals suffer a severe allergic reaction that can leadto anaphylactic shock, which can be fatal if not treated promptly. Smallchildren and elderly people are particularly susceptible to seriousinjury from fire ants.

The control of fire am colonies in the environment has been attemptedthrough the use of insecticides that either kill the insects directly oncontact or result in a disruption of their reproductive cycle. Thesechemicals are being used more extensively and they are beginning to posea serious threat to the quality of ground water systems in highlyconcentrated population areas. The poisons that kill on contact onlyeliminate a small portion of the fire ants exposed on the surface of theground. Many of these ants remain below ground, in the mound, and merelymove to a new location and reestablish a new colony. Baits that resultin a disruption of the fire ant's reproductive process are moreeffective in eliminating a colony, but they are slow to achieve resultsand recent experience indicates that the fire ants may be developingimmunities to some of these chemicals that may reduce their long termeffectiveness. A more recent idea involves importing a natural predatorof the fire ant from its place of origin. The predator is a small gnatthat lays it's eggs in the eyes of fire ants. Some experiments are beingplanned with its introduction in the USA, but the additional sideeffects of introducing yet another insect are unknown.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention disclosed and claimed herein comprises a methodand apparatus for controlling fire ants. This is accomplished byproviding a stimulating source that when activated attracts and agitatesfire ants to the point that ants from a common colony attack each other.Activating the stimulating source causes the fire ants to cluster aroundthe stimulating source and attack each other. The stimulated fire antsare urged into a tightly confined space to exacerbate the attackreaction. An AC voltage may be used as the stimulating source. A conicalshaped container that extends downward to an apex may be used to forcethe stimulated fire ants closer together and thereby exacerbate theattack reaction. Periodic or continuous vibration applied in an areaproximate to the stimulating source may be used to attract additionalfire ants. The periodic vibration may be interrupted by the detection offrequency or amplitude variations in the stimulating source outputcaused by fire ants proximate to the stimulating source.

The stimulating source is provided across two conductive plates that areseparated by a small insulating gap. The width of this gap is set suchthat a fire ant must touch both plates when attempting to cross thearea. The plates are arranged in concentric circles around the inneredge of an open cone. One plate is mounted in a flat horizontalorientation that is parallel with the open end of the cone. The gap andthe other plate are located on the sloping surface of the cone, which ismade out of a non-conductive material. Plates may also be used on thetip of the cone and the outer rim of the cone that contacts the ground.This causes current flow through the ant mound. The opening of the coneis covered by an enclosure that contains solar cells, an electronicsmodule(s) and an electro-mechanical module. The solar cells are operatedin series to provide low voltage direct current which is converted tohigh voltage alternating current by an electronic module. Thealternating current is used to drive the conductive plates. The lowvoltage direct current is also used to power an electro-mechanicalmodule. This module uses an electronic circuit to monitor elapsed timeand it periodically powers a small electric motor to produce mechanicalvibration. The vibration is produced by a counterweight mounted on themotor shaft. The electro-mechanical module may also monitor thefrequency or the amplitude of the alternating current to determine whenfire ants are being stimulated and interrupt motor power when thisprocess begins. This prolongs motor life and helps conserve power.

In another aspect of the present invention, fire ants are prevented fromgaining access to a select area having a defined access path. This isaccomplished by disposing a stimulating source in/he access path that,when activated, attracts and agitates fire ants to a point that antsfrom a common colony will attack each other. When the stimulating sourceis activated, fire ants cluster around the stimulating source and fallaway from the select area. An AC voltage may be used as the stimulatingsource.

The stimulating source is provided across two parallel rings that aremounted on an insulator with a gap and the apparatus is attached aroundany select area having a defined access path. This includes a trafficelectrical control box mounted on a pole, a telephone cable risermounted on the ground, electric utility components mounted on a pole ora ground mounted electrical enclosure. Fire ants are attracted andagitated when the stimulating source is activated. They subsequentlyfall away from the select area. Fire ants that return are stimulated andfall again. This process prevents ants from reaching the select area andcausing damage to equipment, personnel or property located in the selectarea. The stimulating source is powered by solar panels with batteryback-up for nighttime operation, by direct connection to availableelectrical power, or by inductive coupling to power circuits.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a fire ant mound showing the systemof the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an overhead view that illustrates the arrangement of the solarpanels and the viewing window;

FIG. 3 illustrates the schematic diagram of the electronics module;

FIG. 4 illustrates the schematic diagram of the electro-mechanicalmodule;

FIG. 5 illustrates the traffic control pole configuration;

FIG. 6 illustrates the telephone cable riser application;

FIG. 7 illustrates the electric utility pole application; and

FIG. 8 illustrates the ground-mounted electrical enclosure application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a cross-sectional viewshowing one implementation of the system of the present inventioninstalled in a fire ant mound 12. At the tip of the conical container 14is a conductive outer conical surface 16 which is electrically connectedvia wire 19 and current limiting resistor 15 to a sloping plate 18mounted on the inside wall of the container 14. The sloping plate 18 isalso electrically connected via a wire 19 to the ground reference of theelectronics module 20. The high voltage output of the electronics module20 is electrically connected via wire 17 to another sloping plate 21which is located in a concentric orientation with sloping plate 18 witha small open gap 22 located between the plates. The plate 21 alsoextends along the lip of the cone 14 and it covers the outer edge of thelip. Bolts 23 are used to hold the two halves of the watertightenclosure 24 together and to mount the container 14 to the enclosure 24using spacers 25 to provide an opening for the fire ants to enter thesystem. The electronic module 20 and the electro-mechanical module 28are powered by solar cells 26 and they may also be powered by batterypower, wind generated power, or electric utility circuits which are notshown. The electric utility circuit connections may be either directlyconnected or inductively connected. The solar cells 26 convert sun lightto low voltage direct current power. Concentric circular tings 37composed of semi-circle shaped lenses are used to gather sunlight whenthe sun is at a low elevation angle. The electronics module 20 convertsthe low voltage direct current power to high voltage alternating currentpower. This high voltage alternating current power is applied across thesloping electrical plates 18 and 21 with the gap 22 separating theplates. The high voltage alternating current power is also appliedacross the plate 21 and the conductive outer conical surface 16 with thesoil providing a path for currents 32 to flow through the fire ant mound12. Resistor 15 limits the amount of current that can be providedthrough this circuit. A bail handle 36 is provided to remove the systemfrom the mound 12. Not shown in the figure is a depth scale that is usedto measure the approximate number of fire ants that are contained in theenclosure. The scale consists of a series of numbers and tick marks onthe sloping wall of the conical container.

In operation, the system is placed near a fire ant mound 12 and thenpressed into the ground by applying force to the top surface of theenclosure 24 with one foot protected by a shoe or boot. The bail handle36 is rotated to one side to allow easy access. The system is pressedinto the mound 12 until the outer lip of the conical container 14 fullycontacts the ground around the outer curved surface. The conical shapeof the container 14 causes a collapse of the conical structure of roomsand tunnels beneath the surface of the ground in a typical fire antmound. This action causes an immediate reaction of attacking fire antsthat converge on the system and enter the open area surrounding theconical container 14. Fire ants entering the sloping area at the openingof the conical container 14 are standing on conical plate 21. They stepacross the open gap 22 and touch plate 18 whereupon an alternatingcurrent starts to flow through their bodies. After exposure to thecurrent for a few minutes, these ants start to move in erratic motionsand appear to enter a state of frenzy and begin stinging and bitinganything that comes into contact with them. It is believed that thereaction of the fire ants to electrical stimulus is one of encounteringa living prey. Fire ants typically hold onto their prey with theirmandibles before initiating a rapid stinging sequence. This helpsprevent them from being shaken off by their prey. All surfaces in thesystem are smooth, hard and difficult for the fire ants to grab withtheir mandibles. Using high magnification video recording cameras, theyhave been observed to grab and sting each other repeatedly. These antsform in clusters 27 near the energized plates. These clusters 27 andindividual fire ants fall to the bottom of the conical container 14 andform an accumulation 30. The grabbing and stinging continues without anyadditional electrical stimulation. This is believed to be caused by theemission of a class of pheromones and/or toxins by the fire ants thatcause them to fight. Inside the accumulation 30 of fire ants, theconcentration of these chemicals increases rapidly. Those fire ants inthe lower section of the conical container are covered by new layers ofants. The conical shape of the container 14 causes the ants to be forcedcloser together and helps accelerate the process. Some fire ants 29escape the process and climb up the wall of the container 14 until theyencounter plate 18 and plate 21, whereupon they are stimulated again andfall back into the accumulation 30. Fire ants are attracted to thecontainer 14 by the currents 32 flowing into plate 21 and by periodicvibration produced by the electro-mechanical module 28. Theelectro-mechanical module 28 contains a timing circuit which controls atransistor switch to provide power to a direct current motor 38. Themotor shaft contains a counterweight 39 which produces vibration whenrotated.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is illustrated an overhead view of thesystem located in a fire ant mound. Four rectangular solar cells 50 arearranged in a circular ring around the outer area of circular enclosure55. The circular enclosure 55 also contains the electronic module andthe electro-mechanical module which are located in compartmentsunderneath two of the solar cells 50. Two additional compartments arelocated under the other two solar cells 50. These compartments may beused to house rechargeable batteries and/or additional electronics. Thecenter of the circular enclosure contains a round viewing window 51,which is formed using clear plastic. The surfaces of this window 51 maybe shaped as a convex lens to provide optical magnification as an aid inviewing activity and to concentrate sunlight. The concentrated sunlightacts to elevate the temperature inside the container and helpsaccelerate the effects of the pheromones and related chemicals. Shownthrough the clear window 51 is an accumulation of fire ants 52. The bailhandle 53 is shown rotated to the top side of the of circular enclosure55. The dotted lines 56 in the figure illustrate the structural walls ofthe enclosure that support the forces associated with insertion into theground. They also show the location of the four bolts 57 that are usedto hold the two halves of the enclosure 55 together. Also shown in thefigure are constant height contour lines 54, which illustrate thesloping nature of ground heights around the fire ant mound.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a schematic diagram of theelectronics module. Four solar cells 60 are connected in series toprovide a nominal voltage of about 2 Volts DC at a current of about 500milliamperes for a total input power of about one watt. The intensity ofsunlight 62 that strikes the solar cells 60 controls the voltage level.A electrolytic capacitor 70 is connected across the output.Alternatively, the solar cells may be used to charge rechargeablebatteries or power storage capacitors which are in turn used to powerthe circuit. This allows the circuit to operate during periods ofdarkness. Other supplemental power sources include public utilitycircuits and wind-powered alternators. The positive output terminalvoltage V+ is connected to the center tap in the primary of transformer64. The V+ voltage is also supplied to electro-mechanical module. Theground terminal of the series of solar cells 60 is connected to theelectro-mechanical module and to the emitters of transistor 67 andtransistor 69. The bases of these power switching transistors areconnected via resistor 66 and resistor 68 back to the end points of theprimary of transformer 64. The secondary terminals of the transformer 64are connected across a capacitor 71 and one terminal is connected to aresistor 72. The resistor 72 limits the output current to a fewmilliamperes.

In operation, the circuit functions as a combination resonant oscillatorand DC to AC converter. The power switching transistors 67 and 69 areused in a common emitter configuration to switch ground across theprimary terminals of transformer 64 with the center tap tied to the plusvoltage V+. The base resistors 66 and 68 set the current required toplace the transistors 67 an 69 in a saturated on-state. The transistorcollector outputs are cross-connected to the base inputs to create theswitching drive signal. The resonant frequency is controlled by theinductance of the transformer 64 combined with the capacitance of thetransformer 64 and its reflected capacitive load which consists of theparallel plates and the conducive tip. Capacitor 71 is added across thetransformer secondary terminals to set the primary output frequency ofthe resonant circuit. The circuit can operate in a frequency range ofabout one to twenty kilohertz. The AC switched voltages applied acrossthe primary of the transformer 64 are stepped up by a high turns ratiotransformer 64. The resultant AC output voltage across terminals 73 and74 ranges from a low of about 30 Volts AC at sunrise and sunset to ahigh of about 250 Volts AC at mid-day. This output voltage is suppliedvia a current limiting resistor 72 which protects the circuit fromoverload. This output voltage is supplied across the plates and theconductive tip via a current limiting resistor which limits the currentflowing through the ground during wet conditions.

Referring now to FIG. 4, there is illustrated a schematic diagram of theelectro-mechanical module. The circuit derives its power from the solarcells via the V+ and ground terminals. An electrolytic capacitor 82 isconnected across the input power terminals. The plus voltage terminal 80is connected to the plus terminal of the motor 84. A diode 86 isconnected across the motor 84 power input terminals. The negativeterminal of the motor 84 is connected to the collector of transistor 88and the emitter is connected to circuit ground. The base of transistor88 is connected to the collector of transistor 90. The emitter oftransistor 90 is connected to the V+ bus and the base is connected viaresistor 91 to the output of the timing chip 93. The output is alsoconnected through resistor 92 to the V+ bus. The input power pin of thetiming chip 93 is connected to the V+ bus. Timing resistor 94 isconnected from the V+ bus to the discharge input of the timing chip 93.Timing resistor 95 is connected from the discharge input to thethreshold input of the timing chip 93. Timing capacitor 97 is connectedfrom the threshold input of timing chip 93 to ground. Power decouplingcapacitor 96 is connected across the input power terminals of timingchip 93. Noise filtering capacitor 98 is connected across the controlinput of the timing chip 93.

In operation, the low voltage timing chip 93 is operated as a longperiod multivibrator. Capacitor 98 charges through resistor 94 andresistor 95 to the trigger voltage level and then discharges throughresistor 95 only to the threshold voltage level. The output is highduring the charging cycle and low during the discharge cycle. The dutycycle is controlled by the resistors 94 and 95 and the capacitor 97.Typical low periods are set to be on the order of a few minutes and highperiods ire typically set for periods of 20 minutes to one hour. A lowoutput allows a small amount of current to be sinker by the timing chip93 at its output terminal. This causes transistor 90 to be turned on bypulling current from the base of the transistor. Resistor 91 is selectedto assure that transistor is in a saturated on-state. Resistor 92 isselected to make sure transistor 90 turns off when the timer chip outputis in the high state. A saturated transistor 90 supplies current intothe base of transistor 88 which turns on and supplies a ground to motor84 via its collector and emitter which is connected to ground. The diode86 protects the electronics against inductive spikes generated by themotor 84. Transistor 88 is turned off when transistor 90 returns to theoff state under control of the timing chip 93 output. The motor isturned on for a few minutes at intervals up to one hour apart. Vibrationis produced by the action of the counterweight 85 rotating on the end ofthe motor 84 shaft. The vibration is coupled from the electro-mechanicalmodule to the enclosure 24 and through the spacers 25 and bolts 23 tothe conical container. The motion of the conical container couples tothe surrounding ground in and around the fire ant mound. This periodicvibration causes the fire ants to attack in successive waves untilvirtually no defenders are left in the mound.

The number of fire ants feeding on the plates affect the resistive andcapacitive loading on the resonant circuit used in the electronicsmodule. These changes cause variations in the output frequency. Analternative motor control option not shown, involves monitoring theoutput frequency or the output amplitude for variations and interruptingthe motor power once feeding activity begins. The electronics, which arenot shown, use traditional frequency or amplitude detectors that producea signal output that can be used to interrupt motor power.

Referring now to FIG. 5, there is illustrated a pictorial diagram of analternative configuration of the system that is designed to keep fireants out of electrical control boxes such as those used in trafficcontrol. The control electronics are normally mounted in an electricalenclosure 103 and mounted on a pole 102 in the ground 100 at aconvenient working height. An enclosure 104, containing an electronicmodule, is connected by cable 105 to an insulating collar 107 thatcontains a conductive surface 109. An insulator 111 of uniform thicknessis installed between the collar 107 and the pole 102. The electronicmodule is also connected to a conductive ring 108 by cable 106.

In operation, solar cells located in the electronic module 104 producedirect current which is used to charge a separate battery 110 via cable112. The battery 110 supplies power to the electronic module 104 duringperiods of darkness. The electronic module produces an AC output voltagewhich is applied across a conductive ring 108 and a flexible conductivesurface 109 which is located on a curved surface of an insulating collar107 in an area that is protected from the elements. The location alsooffers some protection from casual contact by people that are working onthe equipment. The insulating collar can be made from any flexiblematerial such as rubber that can be shaped to fit curve surfaces. Theflexible material is resistant to ultraviolet light and weather damage.Not shown is a protective outer collar made of a rigid material such asplastic or metal that is placed over the upper surface and the sides ofcollar 107. The rigid member is attached to the pole to providemechanical protection for the soft flexible surface. If the collar isconductive, it can connected to the conductive ring 108 to provide anadditional conductive surface adjacent to the flexible conductivesurface 109 at it outer periphery. The flexible conductive surface ismade by coating or impregnating the flexible surface with anelectrically conductive material such as an elastomer that containsnickel, silver or graphite. The cable 105 is bonded to the surface usingthe same material. Cable 105 is connected to a conductive ring 108 whichis made of a flexible conductive polymer film or a thin metal foil withan adhesive backing. The insulating collar 107 may also be made of arigid insulating material that is manufactured to fit the application.It may be coated with a conductive material or plated and it may beconstructed with a layer of conductive plastic to form a rigidconductive surface 109. The conductive ring 108 may be formed by using asection of the bare metal pole 102 that is unpainted or it may beconstructed of a rigid conductive material that is attached around thepole.

Fire ants are attracted to the control electronics and attempt to reachthem by climbing from the ground 100 up the pole 102 toward theelectrical enclosure 103. When they reach the conductive ring 108 theyproceed onward toward the insulating collar 107 and they encounter theconductive surface 109. Touching the conductive surface while standingon the conductive ring stimulates the fire ants and causes them to graband sting each other repeatedly and to form in clusters 114 and to fallfrom the pole to the surface of the ground 100 in an area near the pole.The clusters 114 also form near the base of the pole. Some ants proceedup the pole for additional attempts to reach the control electronics.They are subsequently removed from the pole by the same process. Thisprocess continues until all ants are eliminated.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is illustrated a typical telephoneapplication. A telephone cable riser 120 is mounted directly on theground above the underground telephone cable which is not shown. Thecable riser provides a connection point for customer telephone cables.Fire ants are attracted to the electrical signals inside theseenclosures. An enclosure 122 containing an electronic module asdescribed above which is connected by cables to an insulating collar,insulator and conductive ring assembly 126 as described above. Theseflexible components are shaped to conform to the riser 120 which isrectangular in shape. A rechargeable battery 124 is connected by cablesto the electronics module inside the enclosure 120. The battery providesfor operation in darkness. The system may also be powered from the 48volt DC power that is provided on the telephone cables. This power maybe taken from an unused pair or stolen in smaller amounts from multipleused pairs. The system operates in a fashion as described above.

Referring to FIG. 7, a utility pole 130 that contains power transformers132 connected to high voltage power transmission wires. Three phasepower transmission methods using three (delta method as shown in thefigure) or four (Y-method) wires are used to transmit power. A singlephase 134 is selected as a power source which provides an AC magneticfield 136 and a electric coil 138 is mounted in close proximity to thissingle phase such that an AC voltage is induced across the output of thecoil 138 and connected to the combination collar, insulator andconductive ring 140 via cables 142. This configuration does not use anyother electronics and does not require any direct electrical connectionto the power lines. This provides reduced cost and makes widespreadusage economically feasible. Reliability is enhanced by avoiding directpower line connections, which are often prone to lightning damage. Thesystem operates in a fashion as described above with the exception thatits frequency is reduced to the prevailing power frequency of either 60or 50 Hertz.

Referring to FIG. 8, a ground-mounted electrical enclosure 141 is usedto contain power transformers or any other type of electricalcomponents. An enclosure 142 containing an electronic module asdescribed above which is connected by cables to an insulating collar,insulator and conductive ring assembly 146 as described above. Theseflexible components are shaped to conform to the enclosure 141 which isrectangular in shape. A rechargeable battery 144 is connected by cablesto the electronics module inside the enclosure 140. The battery providesfor operation in darkness. The system operates in a fashion as describedabove. The system may also be powered continuously using either a directconnection to the AC power circuits or an inductive pickup as describedabove.

Although the preferred embodiment has been described in detail, itshould be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterationscan be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a cross-sectional viewshowing one implementation of the system of the present inventioninstalled in a fire ant mound 12. The following experiments have beenconducted with a prototype device that has been constructed as shown inFIG. 1.

1) The device used in this experiment did not have a vibration module 28and it did not contain a conductive outer conical surface 16 at the tipof the cone. It was placed in a fire ant mound 12 measuringapproximately 24 inches in diameter and approximately 10 inches high.The device was operated for approximately 24 hours continuously by usingfloodlights during darkness. A conical container 14 that isapproximately 6 inches deep was filled with dead fire ants in thisperiod of time. The number of ants in a small sample were counted andthe number of ants per unit of volume was calculated. Using the totalvolume of the container 14, the estimated contents was calculated asapproximately 100,000 fire ants. All signs of mound activity disappearedwithin three weeks after treating the mound. Other smaller moundslocated within about 10 feet of the treated mound remained active anddid not change in size. No new mounds were noted in the adjacent area.

2) The device as shown in FIG. 1 with a conductive outer conical surface16 at the tip and a vibration module 28 was operated in smaller moundsmeasuring from 6 inches to 12 inches in diameter. These were youngermounds with smaller surface height accumulations of approximately oneinch or less of soil. These mounds were located in an open field that isabout 1 acre in size. Ten mounds were treated by one device over a twoweek period. The device was left in each mound for a period that rangedfrom 1 to 2 days each. The device was checked and emptied each day. Thedead ants were dumped back into the conical hole and the device wasre-inserted into the mound. The device did not contain a backup batteryand consequently was operated using sunlight only.

Referring now to FIG. 5, there is illustrated a cross-sectional viewshowing one implementation of the system of the present inventioninstalled in a traffic control pole configuration near a fire ant mound.The following experiment has been conducted with a prototype device thathas been constructed as shown in FIG. 1.

The device used in this experiment did not contain an electricalenclosure 103. It had an enclosure 104 containing an electronic moduleconnected by cable 105 to an insulating collar 107 that contained aconductive surface 109. The insulating collar 107 was mountedapproximately one foot from the top of the pole 102. The pole 102 wasshaped with a flat top and a conical lower end. The enclosure 104 wasmounted on the top of the pole 102. An unpainted aluminum poleapproximately four inches in diameter and approximately 42 inches longwas used. A section of the unpainted pole 102 was used as a conductivering 108. This assembly was placed in a fire ant mound measuringapproximately 12 inches in diameter and approximately 2 inches high. Thedevice was operated for approximately 4 hours. Fire ants were observedto climb up the pole and cluster around the gap between the conductivesurface 109 and the insulating collar 107 that contained a conductivesurface 109. These fire ants were observed to receive stimulation forvarying amounts of time around a few seconds to as long as 30 secondsbefore falling to the ground. None of the ants attempting to climb thepole 102 were able to reach the area above the insulating collar.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for controlling colonies of fire ants inthe environment comprising the steps of:providing a stimulating sourcethat, when activated, will attract and agitate fire ants to a point thatants from a common colony will attack each other; and activating thestimulating source to cause the fire ants to cluster around thestimulating source and attack each other; and urging the stimulated fireants into a tightly confined space to exacerbate the attack reaction. 2.The method of claim 1 wherein the stimulating source is an AC voltage.3. The method of claim 2 and further comprising the step of removing theants while alive for subsequent use.
 4. The method of claim 1 whereinthe step of urging the stimulated fire ants to a tightly confined spacecomprises providing a conical shaped container extending downward to anapex that forces the fire ants closer together.
 5. The method of claim 1and further comprising applying a periodic vibration to an areaproximate to the stimulating source.
 6. The method of claim 5 whereinthe periodic vibration is interrupted when changes in the frequency ofthe stimulating source, caused by fire ants proximate to the stimulatingsource, are detected.
 7. The method of claim 5 wherein the periodicvibration is interrupted when changes in the amplitude of thestimulating source, caused by fire ants proximate to the stimulatingsource, are detected.
 8. The method of claim 1 and further comprisingapplying a continuous vibration to an area proximate to the stimulatingsource.
 9. An apparatus for controlling colonies of fire ants in theenvironment comprising:means for providing a stimulating source that,when activated attracts and agitates fire ants to a point that ants froma common colony attack each other; and means for activating thestimulating source to cause fire ants to cluster around the stimulatingsource and attack each other; and means for urging the stimulated fireants into a tightly confined space to exacerbate the attack reaction.10. The device of claim 9 wherein said stimulating source is an ACvoltage.
 11. The device of claim 10 wherein the ants are removed whilealive for subsequent use.
 12. The device of claim 9 wherein said tightlyconfined space comprises a conical shaped container extending downwardto an apex that forces the fire ants closer together.
 13. The device ofclaim 9 further comprising means for applying a periodic vibration to anarea proximate to the stimulating source.
 14. The device of claim 13wherein said means for applying a periodic vibration is interrupted whenchanges occur in the frequency of the stimulating source, caused by fireants proximate to the stimulating source.
 15. The device of claim 13wherein said means for applying a periodic vibration is interrupted whenchanges occur in the amplitude of the stimulating source, caused by fireants proximate to the stimulating source.
 16. The device of claim 9further comprising means for applying a continuous vibration to an areaproximate to the stimulating source.